Return to the real world
by wishpot
Summary: The sequel to my first fic, Into the real world, is finally here! 7 months have passed since Shizuo returned to his world without Izaya. How will their absences effect each other? Will Shizuo be able to save Izaya from isolation, or will he suffer the heart break of feeling replaced? Featuring OTP SHIZAYA/IZUO! BL - don't like don't read xo
1. Chapter 1 - The Devil of Ikebukuro

**[ A/N ] Hello everyone! Well, I had planned to put writing this sequel off longer, but then I started watching some Shizaya AMV's and I got super inspired and wrote a 1000 word ****_plan _****for this sequel. There are some scenes that I'm really looking forward to write, and I hope you look forward to the release of new chapters. :D**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Durarara! - lets face it, if I did, Shizaya would be an official couple. OTP 3**

* * *

Recap: _"So," Shinra spoke up, "the point you're making is… you think Izaya is still… there?"_

_"Tch." Shizuo quickly left the apartment, his blonde hair covering his face._

_He walked back to the road - the place where he had last seen Izaya. He clenched his fists, and took a deep breath._

_"IIIIIIIZZZZAAAAAAYAAAAA-KUN" he roared at the top of his lungs. He gripped the chest area of Izaya's jacket tightly._

_Wait for me, Izaya. I'll definitely come back for you._

* * *

_How many days has it been? Weeks? Months? Here I am standing here on this road again like some stupid fucking _muppet_. What the hell do I expect to achieve from this!? What good does it do?! Goddammit, Izaya. God damn this fucking situation._

"Shizuo," Shinra called out, cautiously approaching the tall brunette, a bag of take-away from Russian Sushi in his hand. Shizuo turned, the anger in his eyes simmering down upon realising that the man approaching him was only Shinra.

"What do you want?!" he growled, balling his fists.

"Now now, Shizuo-san, no need to overreact.," he said, holding his hands up submissively. "Celty asked me to bring you some food, so here I am."

He was met by silence and a menacing glare, before the 'Devil of Ikebukuro' stiffly walked over to him, rudely snatching the bag out of his hand. Shinra's hand shook slightly as the bag was taken from him. He had known Shizuo since junior high, but Shizuo's recent behaviour was enough to scare even him. Much as his new 'nickname' suggested, the 'Monster of Ikebukuro' was now more widely known as the '_Devil_ of Ikebukuro.' Shizuo had really let himself go. His hatred for violence had evolved into a desire for it, and people all over Ikebukuro were victim to this desire - no matter what gender, age or social standing. Colour gangs, whose members would challenge Shizuo Heiwajima as a test of their strength, bravery and manhood, now fled in his presence.

"Shizuo…" Shinra spoke up, bravely. "It's been 7 months, and this situation is causing you to lose your sanity.. I think it might be best if you just… forgot about everything that happened… forgot about Izaya…" His voice trailed off as he neared the end of his sentence, immediately regretting what he had said.

"I'm sorry. I didn't quite _catch_ _that." _Shizuo's voice held a facade tone of 'calm', which he clearly was _not_ feeling as he approached Shinra, snapping his cigarette in half and picking him up by his collar. Shinra whimpered, slightly pathetically, as Shizuo positioned his face precariously close to his own.

"How about you say that again, _fuckwit._" Shizuo said through gritted teeth, spitting slightly as he annunciated the last word of his sentence. Shinra was as pale as a ghost. He'd been in situations like this with Shizuo before, but never had he actually feared for his life. He always knew that Shizuo wouldn't actually hurt him, but this 'new' Shizuo was different. Shinra doubted that he would even think twice about snapping his neck, there and then. Suddenly, the neigh of a horse melted Shinra's fear.

_Ahh, Celty~ Your timing could not have been more impeccably perfect, _he sighed.

A shadow extended from the headless rider, ripping Shizuo away from his prey, and potentially saving Shinra's life. Shizuo felt a wave of relief and calm flood through his body. Celty was probably the only person - well, Dullahan - in Ikebukuro capable of controlling, or calming, the enraged devil, Shizuo. Truth being told, Shizuo still hated violence somewhere deep in his mind, but this unnerving feeling of insanity would become too much for him to handle, causing him to lash out against anything or anyone. Knowing Celty was with him helped him to feel calm, because he knew he wouldn't be capable of hurting anyone with her around. In fact, it was partly because of this that he had started to live with Celty and Shinra in their apartment.

Celty stood, her arms folded disappointedly and her helmet shaking from side to side. She pulled out her PDA and began typing.

[Shizuo! Please, get a hold of yourself. You've just been released on bail, the last thing I want to see is you back in jail.]

Shizuo hung his head. Of course he felt guilty about the things he had done, but his built up and festering rage needed some form of outlet… Celty deleted the message and began typing a new one to Shinra.

[What did you do to provoke him?] her PDA asked.

Shinra walked over to Celty and whispered the scenario to her, not wanting Shizuo to hear incase it sparked his anger again. Celty stood still for a moment, then boldly held out her PDA to Shizuo.

[I don't know what happened between you and Izaya when you were missing, but your current behaviour is out of control. I don't believe in giving up, but I think Shinra has a point. Waiting in vain has done nothing but ruin you Shizuo, please think about that.]

_It's true, _he thought. _Goddammit I am so fucked up. _

Shizuo clicked his tongue and pulled out a cigarette, lighting it skilfully before stuffing his hands into the pockets of Izaya's jacket.

"Thanks for the sushi, but I don't want it," he said monotonously, before turning his back and walking away.

* * *

Shizuo returned to the apartment at two in the morning, battered and bloodied. He walked unceremoniously into the guest room that had been set up for him three months ago. He stood in front of the mirror and winced at his appearance. His hair had grown down just passed his neck, his un-natural blonde hair long since grown out. He wore Izaya's parka, as he had every day since he returned, alone. A trickle of dry blood ran down his face from his head.

He undressed the top half of his body, revealing multiple scraps and bruises he had received from his most recent fight, as well as the long, Izaya inflicted, scar that ran from his chest to his stomach. He used to _loathe _the scar, but now it served as a sore reminder of what had been lost. Izaya. He reached up a hand and ran it along the scar, stopping when he reached his heart. Upon this action, he observed his wrist, which was slightly chafed from its frequent encounter with Celty's shadow-made handcuffs. Shizuo sighed and flopped onto his bed, not bothering to clean himself up or tend to any wounds using the first aid kit that Shinra had conveniently supplied him with. He placed the back of his hand over his eyes and stared at it, blankly.

_How did it come to this?_

Every day since he had returned - without Izaya - he had gone to the road where they had last seen each other. At first, he was hopeful, trying everything he could think of to reach Izaya, but nothing worked. Shizuo's state of mind deteriorated with the thoughts of Izaya being alone, in a world where he knew nobody. He couldn't do anything to save him - nothing at all - and, with thoughts like these plaguing his mind, he soon began to resent himself.

He stopped caring about himself, and the effects his actions would have on him, and, one day, he snapped, losing all control of his common sense and reasoning. A car had approached him when he was standing on _that_ road. The driver honked, motioning for him to move out of the way, but Shizuo ran angrily over the car and picked it up. Filled with sheer rage and loss of control, he threw the car as far as he could. When he had released the car from his grasp he had caught a glimpse of the scene that played out in the back seat - two small girls clinging to each other, eyes filled with tears of fear.

The guilt Shizuo experienced from that event was enough to tip the scales, causing him to, almost completely, lose himself to darkness. The only strand of light he held onto was the hope that Izaya would return. After 5 months, the light had burnt out. Shizuo would beat up anyone who looked at him, even if it wasn't 'in-the-wrong-way'. Celty was constantly around him, at her own choice, to keep him in check. The only way the police were able to arrest Shizuo was when Celty played a part in it.

It was around the time when Kasuka was hospitalised due to one of Shizuo's breakdowns, that Celty had decided Shizuo should live with her, and also when Shizuo began to fear himself and what he was capable of doing. He agreed willing to Celty's suggestion, out of fear that he would hurt his brother, or someone else again.

Shizuo sighed once more as he guiltily reflected upon his actions over the past months. No matter where he went, he couldn't escape the violent urges that would possess him, even though he wished he would stop hurting people. Desperately trying to cling onto his one strand of hope, he began thinking about Izaya. He reached into the pocket of his pants and pulled out his yellow flip phone, dialling Izaya's private number. He did this every night, slightly hoping Izaya would answer, but mainly just to hear his voice - even if it was only his answering machine.

"Hiiiii~ You've reached the number of Ikebukuro's own god! Congratulations~! Unfortunately I'm to busy to converse with an inferior person such as yourself, so if you would so kind as to leave a message, I will return your call when I can be bothered… Which might be never, so don't get your hopes up~!" _beep. _

_"_Dammit Izaya… I miss you..." he spoke into the phone.

_beep. beep. beep._

He heard this every night, but a tear always managed to force its way out of his eye, only to be wiped away quickly. He threw his phone violently at the padded spot on his wall, cussing under his breath. If you're wondering why the wall was padded, it was because Shizuo had already broken 5 phones in the same, violent, manner. It wasn't exactly cheap to replace them, and work was becoming harder and harder for him to find, so cushioning up the impact seemed like the best option.

Shizuo exhaled again, curling into a ball on his bed. He pulled out a, hole covered, photo of Izaya from his pocket - the one that he had used for dart practice, back before everything happened between them - and stared at lovingly, as if the image was the only thing that brought him happiness.

_Tomorrow, _he thought, refusing to give into the thought that Izaya might not return. _Maybe tomorrow. _

He then proceeded to fall asleep, the photo of Izaya pressed to his chest.

* * *

Shinra sighed in bed when he heard the thump coming from Shizuo's room. He and Celty often discussed Shizuo's condition, curiously wondering what happened between him and Izaya while they were missing. Obviously, they discussed how Shizuo could have possibly obtained Izaya's favourite item of clothing, but they never really considered that their relationship could have developed to the point where they would even consider each other friends. Shizuo kept his mouth shut when it came to his affection towards Izaya, and Shinra and Celty were oblivious to the constant calls Shizuo made to Izaya's phone. They settled on the conclusion that, without Izaya to take his stress out on, Shizuo snapped. Although this conclusion was not fully satisfying, they couldn't think of anything more realistic. Of course, if they consulted Erika on the matter, she definitely would have put it down to love.

* * *

**[ A/N ] Feeling confused? Go read 'Into the real world'!**

**Thanks for reading! I look forward to your reviews. **

**And for those who were following my first story, I hope this lives up to your expectations of me!**


	2. Chapter 2 - Izaya as Izaya?

**[ A/N ] Hi again! Here is the next chapter. I hope you find it enjoyable. **

**I'm a bit worried that I didn't get Izaya's character right... but I just felt like this was something he'd do.. I don't know. **

* * *

"Don't you think this pose is a little… out of character, photographer-san~?"

"Mmm.. well it's not really up to me. The head of marketing said something about 'attracting fan girls'.. or something," the photographer said.

Izaya sighed and looked up at the tall blonde man who was wearing a bartenders uniform and purple sunglasses. He reached up one hand, placing it on the man's face, and positioned the other behind his back, angling the fake knife in his hand so that it pointed towards the man's back. Just as the photographer was about to take a snap, Izaya dropped the pose and turned to face him.

"Ok, but why the ears?" he asked, motioning to the cat ears on both his head and the blonde's.

"Look, I don't know. If you have a problem, take it up with marketing.. They think stuff like this will sell. Don't worry, this won't even be on the main promotional poster so you won't see it around much. Izaya please, can you hold your pose for longer than 30 seconds so I can get these pictures or what?" the photographer replied, slightly annoyed.

Izaya sighed and repositioned himself in the choreographed pose. The photographer snapped away, taking photos from multiple different angles and adjusting the lighting occasionally. When he finished up, Izaya returned to his dressing room and changed from the very-similar-but-not-the-same black, fur lined parka into his normal clothes. He picked up his bag and headed out of the building.

"Good work today, Izaya" the blonde man called out after him.

Izaya continued to walk, not looking back or acknowledging his colleague. He jumped in a taxi and gave the driver the address to his apartment. The drive usually took longer than it did to walk, due to traffic, but Izaya had wanted to avoid any fan-girls. Sure, he loved the way they treated him like the god he was, but they could get _damn_ annoying sometimes.

* * *

"Shizu-nyan~!" Izaya called as he entered the door of his luxurious apartment. A small, yellow and brown, kitten bounded down the hall of the apartment, mewing happily at the return of his owner. It wore a collar that looked like a bow tie. Izaya bent down and gently scratched the kitten behind it's ears before setting his bag down on the coffee table and taking out the tabloid he had purchased earlier. He had been warned by 'people in the business' never to read tabloids, but he couldn't help himself. He loved observing the way humans would tell blatant lies in print, and how they would abuse each others privacy. Not much brought him happiness these days, but reading tabloids was one of the things that got pretty close. He flicked open the magazine, turning to the page that featured himself.

**[Izaya Orihara to play Izaya Orihara in Durarara! live action film!]**

Boring. He already knew that.

**[Izaya caught! Celebrity drug scandal!]**

_Pffft! What an incredible lie! Where did they get the inspiration for that from~ _He laughed to himself as he read the rest of the article, amazed at how something so ridiculously false was allowed to be published.

**[Izaya Orihara involved with the mafia?!]**

Izaya scoffed. _Well, I guess I did have some involvement with people from 'the underground'.. _

* * *

After three weeks of waiting for Shizuo in vain, Izaya decided that there was no use moping around. After all, there would be time to do that once he had some sort of security in this world. In order to be able to live comfortably, he would need an ID, along with other things like a bank account, so he did what he knew best. He gathered information and sold it to some pretty shady people who, in return, set him up with all the 'paperwork' he needed. Izaya had originally considered changing his name when the time came, but he decided against it. After all, Izaya Orihara was the name of a _god_, and he didn't want to give that up. Even though he finally had an identity in this world, Izaya didn't have any money or any place to stay. He considered getting back into his career as an informant, but he didn't know anything about how the 'underground' worked in this world, but he got the feeling that getting involved was even more dangerous than what he was used to. He found himself always winding up back at _that_ road, desperately missing Shizuo and wanting nothing more to return, or at least for Shizuo to be with him again. He didn't care which world they were in, he just wanted his Shizu-chan.

One day, when he was heading into the centre of the city to find something to eat, a very suspicious man approached him, offering him a business card. Izaya knew what model scouts were, and he was slightly flattered that one had approached him. Even though he thought the modelling scene was completely stupid and slightly embarrassing, he desperately needed the money, so he visited the agency where he was hired. At first, he felt like a complete tool posing for the camera. He had planned to quit as soon as he had saved up enough money, but his fan base grew incredibly rapidly and he had to admit, he liked the attention. These people would treat him like the god he was, and he loved every moment of it. Not only that, but it provided him with a completely new perspective to observe his beloved humans from.

Izaya was the 'unapproachable' type of celebrity. He gave off a very hostile vibe and acted like he was better than everyone - and he was _loved_ for it. His personality was exactly like that of Izaya Orihara's from the very popular anime Durarara, and a relatively famous director picked up on this. His live action Durarara film had been given the 'OK' by the film producers, and he decided that Izaya was absolutely the perfect person to play Izaya. He didn't even care if he had no acting experience, because this guy was exactly the same in his manner, speech, personality and appearance. He contacted Izaya's agent without hesitating and Izaya, slightly reluctantly, took the job.

After about 3 weeks of shooting the film, the first fight scene between Izaya and Shizuo was shot. The people from the prop department had given Izaya a prop switchblade, which looked exactly like his old one, but Izaya absolutely refused to shoot the scene unless he was allowed to use his butterfly knife that was given to him by Shizuo. Once Izaya had displayed his skill at using the butterfly knife, the director reluctantly agreed to let him use it. The filming began, and Izaya tried as hard as he could to convince himself that the actor playing Shizuo was the real deal. When the choreographed fight began, 'fake Shizuo' swung his fist at Izaya, who's body began to move in autopilot. He dodged the punch that would have never actually made contact, slashed the actors chest with the knife, drawing blood, and then swiftly flipped backwards, pushing off one hand before returning to his upright stance. His eyes were firing with the same passion they held when he fought Shizuo, and he realised just how much he missed this feeling. The crew stared at him in awe. No one had expected him to pull off a move like he did. Not only that, but had he physically injured his co-star. Members of the first aid staff rushed in to treat his wound, and Izaya was sent off the set early. It was considered wether Izaya would be fired from his role, but so many scenes had already been shot, and it would have been too difficult and time consuming to re-shoot.

While Izaya was walking home and reflecting on his actions, he came across a small kitten who was sitting in an alley. It was a yellowish colour, but it had brown patches of fur all all over it's body. It reminded him of Shizuo. Suddenly, a wave of emotion crashed down upon him. His life had been so chaotic and eventful, that he hadn't really thought of Shizuo. Upon this revelation, he began to cry uncontrollably. He fell to his knees, not giving a fuck about whether anyone saw him. He was silent as he cried, but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't stop the endless tears from flowing. His chest felt like it had been torn apart. The thought of almost forgetting about _his_ Shizuo was too much to bare. He couldn't even bring himself to stand up. All of a sudden, the small kitten walked over to him and jumped on his lap. It stood on it's hind legs, placing it's front paws on Izaya's chest, and licked at the tears that were on his cheeks. Eventually finding the strength to stand, Izaya picked up the cat.

"How about you come and live with me, Shizu-nyan~" he said, sniffing slightly before his famous smirk appeared back on his face.

* * *

Izaya set the tabloid down on the coffee table. Shizu-nyan had positioned himself on Izaya's lap and purred contently as Izaya stroked his back. He wondered what Shizuo was doing. God, he wanted to see him _so_ bad. Spending time on the set of the film with the 'fake Shizuo' became more and more torturous, causing Izaya's longing for the real one to grow and grow.

Izaya lifted Shizu-nyan off his lap and went into the bathroom, opening up the medicine cupboard and pulling out a bottle of pills. He had recently started to take them for his depression, even though it felt like they weren't helping at all. He placed one in his hand and swallowed it dry. He couldn't remember exactly when he started to feel sick and depressed, the desire to see Shizuo tearing his soul in two. Shizu-nyan, although very comforting, was little replacement for the real thing. Still, Izaya found himself looking forward to seeing his kitten every day, as it was the only thing that _really_ reminded him of Shizuo.

_God, I just want to see you Shizu-chan.. I'm dying here. _

* * *

**[ A/N ] I hope that the recap of the past 7 months in Izaya's life was clearly a recap, and not too confusing :S**

**Pretty long chapter, I couldn't help myself. I guess this is what happens when you plan your story and have a destination you want it to arrive at. **

**Thanks for reading, following, favouriting and reviewing! I look forward to more reviews!**


	3. Chapter 3 - Morning walk

**[ A/N ] A chapter a day, how diligent of me!**

**I hope that this chapter lives up to my standard. I apologise to those who didn't like the last one. I didn't really show much of Izaya's true emotions, because I figured that he wouldn't even be showing them to himself. But yeah, I hope this chapter explains more of how Izaya is feeling... **

**Ps. I literally cracked up when I read your review, Lolita Rafane! I'm glad you got my Shingeki no Kyojin reference :P**

* * *

"Shizu… Shizu.. chan… Shizu-chan… Shizuo… Shizuo!"

Izaya bolted upright in bed, his face broken out in a cold sweat with the remnants of tears lingering in the corners of his eyes.

_Another nightmare… Shizuo… dammit. _

Izaya placed his head in his hands, gripping onto his hair. Shizu-nyan rubbed against him, trying his best to comfort his owner. Izaya cursed loudly, scaring away the kitten.

_Why is this happening to me? _

All his life, Izaya was able to deal with any problem, no matter how big or small. He was able to block anything out, forget anything that was causing him pain. He didn't just push the thoughts to the back of his mind - ignoring them and putting on a strong face - he literally didn't care anymore. He didn't let anything him. Not when he was bullied in school, nor when he came home to a broken family. He wasn't even effected when his father told him that he was 'useless trash' and 'a disgrace to the family name.' Maybe it was this talent for dealing with problems that earned him the reputation he had for being emotionless. He lived his life fearless, because he knew nothing could ever cause him emotional pain. But this ability was failing him at a time when he needed it the most.

_Why can't I just forget and move on like I normally do?! What is this horrible feeling?_

Ever since Shizuo had returned without him, he had felt a small stone growing inside the pit of his stomach. At first, he put it down to jealousy, convincing himself that he was just jealous that Shizuo got to return and he didn't. The stone grew and grew over the months spent separated from Shizuo, but Izaya never let anyone know the pain he was feeling. He didn't _have_ anyone to tell it to, so he kept it bottled up - allowing it to fester while he tried his best to forget. He was like a sarcophagus. Glittery, gold and decorated beautifully on the outside, but really that was just a false cover for a decaying, dead body. To the public he was the 'cool and unshaken' Izaya Orihara. No one knew that he cried himself to sleep every night, and he was glad they didn't. He felt so pathetic. Someone like him shouldn't be affected by something like this, or so he thought. He was a better actor than anyone knew, being able to keep his public image the polar opposite of how he was feeling inside. He'd seen a therapist a few times, when the feeling he became to know as depression started to affect his work. He started a course of anti-depressants, keeping it very secretive from the public. The therapist had also recommended that he spent as much time doing what made him happy.

_What does make me happy? _he thought. _Shizu-chan… Shizu-chan makes me happy. _

Thinking about Shizuo wasn't doing anything to help him feel better, so he had settled for the next best thing - reading tabloids with Shizu-nyan.

"Thank god for you, Shizu-nyan. I would have surely gone insane without your support~" he said out loud to the cat, who twisted it's head sideways and mewed happily.

Izaya looked over at his digital clock and sighed. _12'oclock am… I guess I slept longer than I did last night._

He got up and walked into his bathroom, taking another pill before picking up his phone, knife and keys to go out for a walk. He wasn't very hungry, but he figured if he felt hungry later, he'd just get something to eat when he arrived at the set. He often went for walks late at night, mostly because he couldn't sleep, but also because it reminded him of his old life. He left the balcony door open slightly, like he always did, so that Shizu-nyan could leave if he wanted to. The apartment was really high up, and Izaya had no idea how the small cat managed to get down, but he'd seen it frequently on the streets. Sometimes it would even follow him to work.

It was cold outside, and Izaya's breath steamed up when he exhaled. He wished he had his favourite parka but, when he thought about it, he was happy that it was with Shizuo.

_At least I won't have to worry about him forgetting me._

He breathed into his hands, rubbing them together to create some warmth. He never planned where would go when he went for walks, he just let his feet take him where ever they wanted to go. Often, he ended winding back up at the infamous road. Today was no different. He stared at the spot where he had shared his last embrace with Shizuo, blushing a little at the memory. He suddenly remembered that Shizuo had started to say something.

_"Izaya," he had mumbled "I… I… lov-"_

Dammit, why had he been so impatient! What was it he was going to say? Honestly, he knew where it was probably going to go, but he had wished he had heard it with his own ears. Maybe it would have eased the pain of separation, just a little. Or maybe it would have made it worse...

_This whole thing is your fault Shizuo! If you hadn't been so interesting… if you hadn't gotten stuck with me here… if you hadn't been so kind.. so sweet… if you hadn't been the first person who acted like they cared about me, I wouldn't be feeling like this!_

He threw a punch at the air, crying again.

_What's this.. like the hundredth time I've cried this week? God, I'm so pathetic. You win, Shizuo. You've managed to defeat an emotionless god~! Congratulations. God dammit… I miss you. _

Izaya was about to leave, having decided to return home to avoid breaking down in public, when he heard the ringing of a telephone near by. He looked around and noticed that the sound was coming from a public telephone booth. He cautiously walked over to it, confirming that it was, indeed, ringing. He looked around again, this time scanning for other people incase the phone call had an expected receiver, but he saw no one. He proceeded to pick up the phone, holding it up to his ear.

"Hello?" said a gruff and confused voice on the other end of the line.

"Hello?" Izaya replied, his voice holding the same tone of confusion.

"Who is this speaking?" the deep voice replied.

_Funny, this voice seems vaguely familiar..._

"That's what I'd like to know, after all, you called here~" Izaya replied, forcefully speaking with his overly cheerful tone of voice.

"What do you mean, 'I called'?!" the voice replied, sounding incredibly ticked off.

"Woah, woah there, calm down~ I just presumed it was you who called, seeing as it _was this _phone ringing."

"Tch, I can't be bothered to play this stupid game. Why don't you just piss off?!" the voice said, becoming louder and more aggressive.

_Just like something Shizu-chan would say. _

"Well then, I can't be bothered to speak to a stupid _protozoan_ like yourself, either, so I'll be hanging up now~"

"Iz-?"

Izaya hung up the phone. _I just called that person a protozoan.. I guess I kinda went into autopilot there~ Still.. that voice… it was just like Shizuo's… Maybe I'm going insane. I mean, when do public phones ring? That kinda stuff only happens in movies… _

Izaya sighed and walked away from the phone. He continued to walk in the direction of his apartment, stopping at '24/7' convenience store to buy some milk. Shizu-nyan loved milk, just like Shizuo did. Izaya found it funny how much the tiny kitten reminded him of the huge monster, Shizuo. He payed, and continued to walk home.

Just as he was about to turn into his street, he heard a loud noise. A screech of tires, followed by a loud yowl and finally a thump. Izaya wasn't sure why, but he propelled himself in the direction of the sound. Izaya's eyes widened in horror when he arrived at the scene. He stumbled, dropping the milk he had just bought, and leant against the nearest building to hold himself upright. His stomach threatened to release it's contents, so he quickly reached up his free hand and covered his mouth. His knees felt weak. He blinked, multiple times, hoping that what he was seeing was just a hallucination, but the horrible image didn't change. He tried to call out, but his vocal chords made no sound. His body started to shiver, feverishly.

There, lying limply on the road was a small, brown and yellow, bow tie wearing, kitten.

* * *

**[ A/N ] Gaaah, another depressing chapter. I hate writing these, but I think it's necessary for the story to develop. Don't worry, it should start to get more cheerful soon. I have a great scene worked out for later ;)**

**Thanks for reading, following, favouriting and reviewing! And thanks for the constructive criticism too, I hope I've improved! **


	4. Chapter 4 - Other side of the line

**[ A/N ] Presenting the next chapter! Hopefully this one will lighten the mood a bit, I tried to include some comedy because this story was getting too depressing.**

* * *

It was just past midnight, and the streets were quiet. This was not an unusual occurrence, as people generally tended to stay inside when Shizuo was out. His knuckles were bloodied, having just victimised another colour gang member. He often stayed out at nigh because he didn't have to feel the shame he did when people fled in sight of him. He also, sometimes, felt like he was intruding on Shinra and Celty, and wanted to give them time alone.

He would usually wander around aimlessly, half hoping to find someone to start a fight with, and half hoping that he would run in to no one. He hated violence yet he was the personification of it and, no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't fight the urge to beat people up.

In normal circumstances, he would have had more control, but the anger and loneliness he felt didn't help his situation. He was angry because he was lonely, and he was lonely because he was angry. His anger had driven fear into even his closest friends, including every one from Kadota's group. Celty was the only one who didn't tremble when he was near, although he felt like even she was keeping her distance.

He had stopped briefly to smoke in a park, but then continued to walk, like he did every night, to the road. He sat there, right in the middle of the road, not worrying about blocking the path for cars. After all, it had become common knowledge that, if you didn't want your car smashed, you wouldn't drive it down that street. While he was sitting, he noticed a tiny pain in his leg. Upon further inspection, he deduced that he had been shot, twice.

_Come to think of it, I do remember hearing gunfire in that last fight…_

It wasn't bleeding very badly, so he didn't bother to do anything about it. He just sat there and stared at it, his anger starting to boil again.

_What the fuck?! Only Izaya is allowed to injure me like this. I fucking swear, if I get my hands on that shit head who did this I'll snap his neck. _

Again, his thoughts had trailed back to Izaya. It seemed that his mind could find anything, no matter how completely unrelated, and link it back to Izaya. When he thought about this, he realised that he had always, for as long as he remembered, related everything back to Izaya. Usually, it was just bad things. No milk in the fridge? Must be Izaya's fault. Only got 45% on a really important test? Izaya's fault. Raining today? Izaya. No money for sweets? Izaya. Izaya, Izaya, Izaya. Did he ever think about anything else?

_Why…? That annoying flea has been constantly on my mind since… forever! Does that mean that I… have _liked _him for longer than I realised… Tch, impossible. I definitely felt hate for him, even if it's gone now. No. I still hate him, right? If it wasn't for him, none of this would have happened. See! Everything bad that happens is Izaya's fault. Maybe he is a god. 'The God of bad occurrences'. Yeah, that sounds about right. But then… why does it feel so _good_ when I'm around him? Tch, this thinking shit isn't good for me. I'm such a girl. I should probably just go back to Shinra's now… _

As Shizuo stood up, he heard a phone ringing nearby. His fine-tuned ears easily realised that it was coming from the telephone booth on the other side of the road. He jogged over to it, smashed his fist through the glass instead of opening the door, and picked up the phone.

"Hello?" he asked, sounding slightly confused.

"Hello?" the voice on the other end of the line echoed.

"Who is this speaking?" he asked, just pissed off in general.

_If this is some weird prank to piss me off, it sure as hell is working. How the fuck do you call a public phone anyway?_

"That's what I'd like to know, after all, you called here~" the voice replied, sounding almost sarcastically cheerful.

_What a fucking annoying voice. It's kinda like Izaya's… _

"What do you mean, 'I called'?!" Shizuo asked, annoyed because he _obviously _didn't call the phone.

_Is this guy an idiot or what?!_

"Woah, woah there, calm down~ I just presumed it was you who called, seeing as it _was this _phone ringing."

"Tch, I can't be bothered to play this stupid game. Why don't you just piss off?!" he said, shouting into the handset.

"Well then, I can't be bothered to speak to a stupid _protozoan_ like yourself, either, so I'll be hanging up now~"

_Protozo- Izaya! It is! It's Izaya!_

"Izaya?"

"…"

"IZAYA?!"

_beep. _The person on the other end of the phone had already hung up.

_That was Izaya! I'd know that stupid, annoying insult if I heard it anywhere! Why the fuck is he so stupid?! Dammit, if he'd just stayed on the phone longer… Wait, does this mean he's ok?! Thank god… … not that I was worried or anything… _

Shizuo felt his heart flutter with relief and excitement. The hope he had long since abandoned began returning fast.

_He's alive! He was right.. there! _

Shizuo had almost forgotten what happiness felt like. He ran through the streets with a bounce in his step. A newfound feeling of motivation presented itself to him, causing him to decide that he would find a way to get back to Izaya, no matter what. As he ran past a store window, he caught a glimpse of his appearance.

_Shit. There's no way Izaya will recognise me like this! _

Shizuo reached into his pocket and pulled out his cell, flipping it open to check the time. 4am. He looked back into the window, turning slightly and observing his hair. He ran a hand along it, stopping when he reached the end of the strands. He then held up his other hand, like you would if you played scissors during a scissors-paper-rock game, and imagined cutting his hair.

_How hard could it be?_

The reason his hair had gotten to the state it was in in the first place was because, whenever he approached a hairdresser, the workers inside would abruptly flip the sign from 'open' to 'closed'. Until now, he didn't really care what he looked like, so he didn't let it bother him.

He walked to the nearest mini-mall, stepping inside even after the shopkeeper had suddenly decided that the store was closed, despite the '24 hours' sign that flashed at the entrance. The man cowered behind the counter as Shizuo browed the aisles, clearly looking for something in particular. He stopped when he got to the 'grooming' aisle and picked up a small bottle of liquid. Hair bleach. He turned the bottle over, staring intently at the instructions. He probably read over them for five minutes before deciding that he would probably be able to do it. He walked back to the counter, unconsciously slamming the bleach down upon it rather violently. The shop keep nervously scanned the bottle, and the price popped up on the till. Shizuo reached into his pocket and pulled out some money, which he proceeded to slam on the counter, equally as aggressively, before picking up the bottle and walking out of the shop.

"W-wait, sir! Your change!" the shop keep called after him.

Shizuo lifted an arm and waved dismissively.

"Keep it."

A tiny smug smile appeared on his face. _Damn, I'm so cool._

* * *

Shizuo arrived back at Shinra's apartment around 2am. He looked around, confirming that no one was home. Shinra usually left around this time of day to go to work in his unorthodox, underground, and slightly illegal, surgery. Shizuo presumed that Celty was out doing a job.

He set the bleach down on the bathroom counter, and pulled a pair of scissors out of the drawer. He looked down at himself, then back to the scissors and thought hard. He took off his clothes to avoid getting them covered in hair and bleach, and tried to remember what the hair dressers would do.

_Fuck it. _

He gathered as much hair as he could into a tiny, low pony tail, and picked up the scissors. He held them open around the pony tail, his tongue poking out slightly as he concentrated, staring hard into the mirror. His head was turned awkwardly to the side as he tried to view the back of his head. The hand holding the scissors shook slightly under the pressure and concentration. He closed his eyes and snipped, a large brown chunk of hair flittering to the ground. He winced as he opened his eyes, preparing for the worst. When he saw his appearance, his eyes widened and the sides of his mouth curled upwards slightly.

_Not bad, Shizuo. Not bad._

He admired his work, carefully snipping off any little pieces of hair that appeared to be sticking out or uneven. He then looked down nervously at the bottle of bleach on the counter. He picked it up and turned it over in his hand, reading the instructions for the hundredth time. The more he read them, the harder it seemed to carry them out.

"GAAAH!" he growled before opening the lid and pouring a handful of bleach into his hands. He placed the handful of liquid onto his head and began scrubbing with his hands, working it into the hair. He repeated this until he'd managed to get the majority of his hair back to his recognisable colour. He was too frustrated to admire his job, so he jumped straight in the shower, rinsing off any excess bleach.

* * *

When Celty returned home, she heard a loud 'aah' followed by an, equally as loud, burp. She stepped inside cautiously, not knowing exactly what she expected to find. She was completely shocked when she saw what she did. There, sitting at the table was a short haired blonde, holding an empty three litre bottle of milk. He turned around, and Celty saw something she hadn't for a long time.

It was Shizuo. Not 'the devil of Ikebukuro,' no. This was him. The old Shizuo. The friendly Shizuo.

"Yo, Celty. I'm back."

* * *

**[ A/N ] Yeah.. I hope I managed to get the timing/pacing right with this, I feel that Shizuo might have changed too rapidly. One thing I've always struggled with is rushing my writing. :S Hopefully I'm getting better though!**

**Thanks for reading, following, favouriting and reviewing! I love reading reviews, whether they be constructive criticism or lovely compliments, so keep 'em coming!**


	5. Chapter 5 - Don't jump

**[ A/N ] Home from school sick? Perfect opportunity to write! I must apologise in advance for changing the mood back to being depressing... Don't worry, I swear it'll get better later! (Izaya is a bit out of character, but I felt that this scene was necessary.**

* * *

It was dark. Just, completely dark. In the literal, physical sense, and in the atmospherical sense too. The blinds were drawn closed, and not a sliver of light peeped through.

It was silent. Almost, completely silent. Perhaps the only sounds that broke the heavy silence were the tiny sniffles and curses that appeared to be coming from a balled up blanket on the corner of the couch. The silence was torturous. There was no one - nothing to provide comfort. Not that Izaya wasn't used to it, but he abruptly felt very much alone. A phone buzzed, and buzzed and buzzed. When it stopped, a message flashed up on the screen.

**[132 missed calls.]**

Izaya pulled the blanket tighter around himself, then threw it off in a fit of rage. He re adjusted himself so he was sitting, hunched over with his head in the palm of his hands. The phone buzzed again. Izaya, this time, answered it, holding it up to his head without touching it to his ear.

"Izaya, for f_uck_ sake, where have you been?! We've been calling you for ages! Shit, we thought you were _dead_. Not even your agent could get through. What the hell happened?! Listen, we need you to come in now, because we've gotta shoot a scene, so stop _moping_ like a lazy ass or we'll cut your pay. Do you understand how much we have wagering on this film? Stop being so selfish."

_Pfft. Just what I expected~. No real concern. No _fucking _concern. What am I to them? A money making tool?! _

Izaya hung up the phone, dropped it unceremoniously to the ground and stomped on it, making sure to smash it beyond function. He then sat and stared at the neat pile of tabloids that accumulated on his coffee table. He stuck out an arm and shoved them all onto the floor, screaming out of frustration. Is this how Shizuo felt when he lost his cool? The desire to be completely destructive and violent?

He flicked out his butterfly knife, repeatedly stabbing and ripping his beloved tabloids to shreds. A psychological breakdown. God _damn, _he hated this. His mind blew itself out of control, and he hated it when he wasn't in control. Ironically, the anger and hate for the feeling only fuelled his lack of control, causing the whole emotion to spiral into something beyond return.

He began to think about Shizuo. About how, technically, if it wasn't for Shizuo, none of this would have happened. He would still be causing chaos in Ikebukuro, framing innocent people and provoking people to jump to their deaths. He would still be calm, cool and collected. Not in a blind, out of control, rage. Maybe Shizuo was rubbing off on him. The thought of that kind of irked him. Sure, he was great in some ways, but Izaya never wanted to be like him, like a stupid protozoanic, shit for brains, idiot. Great, now this anger was causing him to flip out at Shizuo.

_What did I even _like _about him in the first place? His maturity is clearly on a completely different level to mine, and his stupidity when it comes certain situations is unparalleled. What suddenly caused me to change my opinion of him so drastically? Maybe it's just this damn place. I haven't felt right since I got here. Dammit, everything is Shizuo's fault. I fucking hate him..- oh great~, now I'm even starting to think using his flawed logic! I bet he's not even rattled by this. I bet he's kicking back at Russian sushi with Tom and a glass of milk, not even bothering to spare an inkling of thought for me. _

The more he thought like this, the angrier and _sadder_ he got. He never really felt needed, not by anyone… except maybe, just maybe Shizuo. The thought of him not giving a rats-ass about Izaya, all alone, made him want to cry - made him cry.

_Why do I even exist? _he thought, _Nothing will change if I disappear forever, except the pain will be gone. A win-win, right?_

He held his knife above his neck, melodramatically. He'd seen many people take their own lives before, but he never even thought _he'd_ consider it.

_I could do it right here, right now with this knife, and no one would even know. This knife that Shizu-chan gave me… how fitting that it would be the tool to take my life. Shizu-chan could almost take credit for it, wouldn't that make him happy~!_

Izaya sighed and put the knife down. He wouldn't be able to take his own life like that, in a situation where he had too much control. He thought about overdosing, but a death like that was too common for celebrities. It wasn't a flashy enough exit for _the_ Izaya Orihara_._

He could jump, he thought. That was definitely flashy and slightly befitting, seeing as he had provoked multiple suicides of the same type. One small movement, and the deed was taken out of his control. Perfect.

As he walked over to the balcony, he stepped on the TV remote which had been thrown on the floor. The TV flicked on, and rather loudly at that, but Izaya ignored it. He placed a cold, sweaty palm onto the glass sliding doors that separated him from his possible death. He rested his head against the glass, and looked out at the world.

_Do I really want to do this? _

He shook his head, not wanting doubt to cloud his thoughts. Of course he wanted too. His shit life wasn't worth living, and after all, he had been a massive jerk and done some awful things to people.

_The world will probably be better off without me anyway._

He slid open the glass door and stepped out onto the balcony. The sudden wind caused his dark hear to blow out of his face, revealing two, pink and swollen, rust-coloured eyes. He took a deep breath and climbed up onto the edge of the balcony. It was the type of balcony that was lined by a small, mid height wall, rather than a metal railing, which made it easy for standing on. Izaya had walked on many precarious building edges before, and he was confident that he wouldn't fall - unless he decided too.

He stood there and held out his arms, a small tear running down his face as he prepared himself to end everything, then and there. He shuddered as a cool breeze blew past, causing his - 'not-trademark' - jacket to flap wildly. He took a deep breath and closed his eyes.

This was it.

_Goodbye, Shizu-chan. _

Izaya lent forward, but snapped upright when he heard the sound of a, very familiar, voice thundering from inside his apartment

"IIIIIIIIIIIIII-ZZZAAAAAAAAAAA-YYAAAAAAAAAA-KUUUUU N"

* * *

**[ A/N ] Weeeeeeeeellll... that was pretty insane. Will Shizuo and Izaya be reunited in the next chapter? Who knows... (not even me)**

**THANKS AGAIN FOR READING blah blah blah etcetera. This is getting old, so I'm going to start saying TFRFFR (aka Thanks for reading, favouriting, following and reviewing) because I'm too lazy to write that at the end of every story, even though I want you all to know that I appreciate (all of the above)**


	6. Chapter 6 - Attention seeker

**[ A/N ] Man, this chapter was hard to write. It was ****_not_**** flowing at all. I really hope it's not as hard to read as it was to write. Is this what writers block is like?! **

**I watched an episode of Drrr today (I finished the series a loong time ago) and I started to doubt my characterisations. Izaya seemed more... insane than I remembered. I think I'll need to work more on getting their characters right in the future chapters. I strive to improve myself, so please, any criticism is welcome.**

* * *

"IIIIIIIIIIIIII-ZZZAAAAAAAAAAA-YYAAAAAAAAAA-KUUUUU N"

Izaya turned around quickly, still standing on the ledge of the balcony but now facing into his apartment.

_That was definitely Shizu-chan's voice… _

The lights were off in the apartment, so it was _possible _that someone could be inside without Izaya noticing.

"Shizu…chan?" he called out into the darkness.

"IIIIZAAAAAYAAAAA" was the sound that came bursting out in response. Izaya jumped down off the ledge, curiously walking inside his apartment. What he saw was expected and unexpected at the same time. There was no one in the room, but much to Izaya's surprise, a familiar blonde appeared before him on the television. His eyes widened as he inspected the scene that played out. A blonde man, wearing a bartenders uniform, was standing in the middle of a large road, holding a small truck above his head. He was roaring Izaya's name over and over.

_"_Shi.. Shizu-chan!" Izaya shouted at the TV, knowing full well that, as much as humans love to do so, communicating through a television was impossible. His legs shook. Maybe it was from excitement, or maybe it was from overwhelming emotion and doubt.

_This… can't be happening. Am I hallucinating?_

He sat on the floor, right up against the TV like a toddler, and stared at it intensely, waiting for something to happen. A news reporter stepped in front of camera, blocking Izaya's view of Shizuo.

"We're live at the scene of the unannounced promotion for the new live action Durarara film that will be airing next fall. As you can see behind me, an amazing stunt is being pulled off by a Shizuo Heiwajima look-alike. Just how is he doing it? Stay tuned to find out!"

The program cut to advertisement, leaving Izaya in a state of confusion.

_Promotion? But.. that was Shizu-chan, wasn't it? I was never informed about any promotions like this…! I guess she did say it was unannounced, but still.. you'd think they'd tell me. Maybe it wasn't Shizuo after all… I guess I got my hopes up for nothing, huh? After all, it's almost been a year. What can I expect…_

The ads ended, and once again the Shizuo Heiwajima 'look-alike' was back on the television. Izaya looked up at the TV, grabbed the remote and pointed it at the screen, his thumb pressing the 'off' button down slowly.

"Izaya, It's me-" the TV went black, but the words that came out beforehand snapped Izaya out of his trance of doubt. He fumbled with the remote, quickly turning the TV back on.

"-Celty and Shinra's. I'll be waiting there." The small truck was then thrown into an unpopulated area of the street where it crumpled against a wall. The large crowd of people standing around Shizuo began cheering and clapping excitedly, as they believed they had just witnessed a promotional stunt for the new movie. Izaya turned off the TV again, and stared down at the palms of his hands which rested loftily in his lap.

_Celty and Shinra's? What does that mean? I'm probably reading too much into this… for all I know it could have been scripted. But… that was definitely Shizu-chan's voice._

Izaya stood up and looked towards his balcony and weighed up his options. He knew that he probably wouldn't have been able to actually bring himself to jump, and he was actually relieved that something had interrupted him. He almost felt embarrassed at how pathetic he'd reacted.

_Celty and Shinra's… Celty and Shinra's… He'll be waiting there? He couldn't mean…_

Izaya bolted out the door of his apartment and ran onto the street. It was already getting dark, and he wasn't very close to the location he suspected Shizuo would meet him at - if that was really Shizuo. He ran through streets, following them as he would if he were in 'his Ikebukuro' and was heading to Celty and Shinra's apartment. Adrenaline pumped through his system, and his pace continued to increase. He was desperate.

_Shizuo… Shizuo… Shizuo… Shizuo..._

* * *

It had only been 30 minutes after Celty had discovered the renewed Shizuo, that he had bolted out the door, mumbling about 'going to save Izaya' or something along those lines. When Shinra returned to the apartment, he found Celty standing, dumbfounded and lost for words. Shizuo had always been one to change with the wind, being able to go from completely calm to rage fuelled in less than a minute, but this change was so dramatic that it had left Celty in a state of shock.

Before going back to the the phone booth where he had last heard Izaya's voice, Shizuo took a train out to Shinjuku. He broke, once again, into Izaya's home (as Namie had moved out of the apartment two months after Izaya's disappearance and wasn't there to let him in). He walked into Izaya's bedroom and laid Izaya's jacket, which he had worn so fondly over the past months, out on the huge, king sized bed.

Shizuo then proceeded to make his way back to Ikebukuro, where he returned to the telephone. He stepped inside the booth this time, his feet crunching on the glass he had smashed, which carpeted the floor. He picked up the phone and stared at it, realising that he had no plan or clue what to do now that he was there. He scratched his head and scrunched up his eyes, trying to think of something smart to do.

He first tried typing Izaya's name into the keypad of the phone using the numbers that corresponded with the correct letters, but that did nothing. He stayed in there for what seemed like hours, trying everything he could think of determined not to give up. The frustration built after each failure, and Shizuo's impatience continued to grow. He was so close. He just wanted to see Izaya again. He didn't even care if they went back to their old, violent relationship, he just wanted to be with him. He smashed his palm down on the keypad and screamed Izaya's name into the phone.

Everything went white.

Once again, Shizuo had left his world and returned to a strange one. His sense of smell had always been very keen and beast-like, so he knew that this world was definitely the one that Izaya had been left in. His heart skipped a beat. He was so close now. Standing still and wasting even a second felt unbearable, knowing that Izaya was somewhere, just beyond his grip. He walked down the streets, noticing that they were very familiar to Ikebukuro, well _his_ Ikebukuro anyway. It didn't take long for him to realise that he had warped, or teleported, or whatever it was, into the 'other Ikebukuro'. He sighed out of relief. Last time he and Izaya had wound up in some completely unfamiliar county, let alone city.

_Hopefully that idiot didn't decide to move somewhere else, although knowing him I shouldn't rule it out. He always manages to find ways to make my life harder._

Shizuo walked through the streets and it wasn't long before he found a clue about Izaya's whereabouts. Well, at least a clue that meant he was still somewhere in this world. It was a large billboard up on the top of a building, but it wasn't the billboard itself, rather the image it displayed, that caught Shizuo's first thing he noticed was, undoubtedly, the flea's face. Shizuo's cigarette dropped out of his mouth in shock.

_What the fuck is he doing on a billboard?! _

Upon further inspection, Shizuo noticed that he too was in the photo, and that they were in a rather precarious positioning. He blushed, but then quickly realised that the person who _looked just_ like him couldn't possibly be himself, and the initial embarrassment turned into rage. Of course, he hadn't bothered to read any of the text on the billboard, but even if he had, it still wouldn't have made sense. The last thing he expected was that Izaya would have gone and gotten himself famous.

He clenched his teeth and his body shook slightly.

_Who the fuck is that guy?! _

He couldn't help it. He felt so unbearably angry. He almost felt… jealous?

_That's _my _Izaya._

With a loud roar, Shizuo ripped a stop sign from the ground and hoisted it above his shoulder. Aiming the pointed end at the billboard, he threw the sign like a javelin, spearing the spitting image of himself right through the head. He couldn't help but grin at his magnificent throw.

_Bullseye. _

For the next three hours, Shizuo wandered around, trying to think of a way to get Izaya's attention. He suddenly noticed a television film crew shooting a woman - whom he presumed was a reporter - nearby a partially demolished building. If he could just make a big enough scene, he might be able to get himself broadcast onto the television, and hopefully that would be enough to get Izaya's attention.

He looked around for something that could aid his attention stunt, his eyes peeling over a small, but still incredibly large, truck. He sized it up.

_Could I lift it?_

There was no one inside the truck, so he walked over and positioned his hands underneath it. His muscles strained and tensed as he pulled upwards. The thing wasn't exactly _light_ - for Shizuo's standards anyway - but he could just manage it. He grunted as he lifted it higher and higher, muscles straining, until he held it triumphantly over his shoulders. He closed his eyes, took a deep breath and then let out the loudest, bloodcurdling cry he could manage without ripping his vocal chords to shreds.

"IIIIIIIIIIIIII-ZZZAAAAAAAAAAA-YYAAAAAAAAAA"

It got just the reaction he wanted. Everyone from the TV crew quickly turned the cameras onto Shizuo. Not long after that, a small crowd had gathered around, and it was growing rapidly. People were standing in awe with their phones out, taking photos. Fangirls were screaming with delight as they watched, what appeared to be, a real life rendition of their beloved Shizuo.

_Tch. What a pain. _

Shizuo kept the truck above his head and continued to shout Izaya's name. When he'd worked up a big enough commotion, he looked down the barrel of the TV camera that was pointing in his direction and shouted.

"IZAYA! There's a rundown apartment block in the same location as Celty and Shinra's. I'll be waiting there."

The truck, now really starting to feel heavy, was thrown into an area where Shizuo was sure it wouldn't hit anyone. It crumpled as it smashed into a wall, sending a cloud of dust through the crowd. Everyone cheered as the 'spectacular performance' ended, but when the cloud of smoke cleared, Shizuo was already gone.

* * *

**[ A/N ] Yeah... not my best chapter. It might be a while before I write the next chapter but I'm finally up to the scene I've been dying to write. I'm actually kinda nervous. It seems so amazing in my head, but I don't know if I'll be able to write it as well as I want it to sound.**

**ANYWAY TFRFFR! - especially reviewing. I swear, your reviews are like my fuel. The more I get, the more motivated I am to get the next chapter up faster. **


	7. Chapter 7 - Water in the dark

**[ A/N ] Sorry for making you wait! Here is the scene that I have been ****_dying_**** to write. I could imagine it playing out in my head, action for action. I think it would possibly be portrayed better as images (like a doujinshi), but I hope I was able to bring it to life. Let me know what you think!**

* * *

The apartment complex was, to say the least, extremely run down. Although it was still completely in use, not a single light was there to illuminate the surrounding area. Perhaps all the residents were extreme introverts, or maybe just early sleepers, but not even the lights in the apartments could be seen.

Izaya walked through through the gate which creaked eerily at his touch. The whole place was kinda spooky, and it sent a shiver down Izaya's spine. He'd been to places that were equally as weird, but he felt a little uncomfortable seeing as his knife-fighting and parkour were 'out of practice,' _and_ he was not exactly in a great emotional state - although to Izaya, any emotion was considered a hindrance. He felt the urge to grip his knife in his pocket, not doubting the fact that someone could jump him at any moment. His mind automatically began to think about the chances this could be some sort of _assassination _attempt. At least he was used to that sort of thing…

He continued to walk further into the complex, his eyes scouting for any sign of movement around him. He suddenly noticed an odd blue light glowing from behind one of the buildings. He wandered towards it, the ambient glow entrancing him.

When he turned the corner around the building, he noticed that the light was coming from a pool. The underwater, slightly blue tinted, lights caused the surrounding area to shimmer magically as the breeze caressed the water's surface. Reflected on the pool's surface was a vast expanse of twinkling stars, much more than was normally visible at night in Ikebukuro. Izaya stood still for a brief moment, taking in the breathtaking sight, eyes suddenly widening as they peeled over a figure standing by the waters edge.

The figure stood with his back to Izaya, his head staring up into the stars that covered deep, black blanketed, sky. His blonde hair flowed like waves as the gentle breeze blew through it. The water's light was giving the figure a spirit-like glow.

At first, when Izaya tried to speak, no sound left his lips. He was stunned. He reached out a hand, but then dropped it by his side quickly, swallowing the lump in his throat. When he tried to speak once more, a tiny voice escaped.

"Shi.. Shiz.."

Shizuo, upon hearing a sound from behind him, turned around at the speed of light, slightly startling the disorientated Izaya. His heart beat fast with excitement and hope. He had been standing there for a while, not knowing whether he had been able to reach Izaya with his message or not. He had half expected no one to turn up, so it was thrilling to hear someone's voice. His eyes fixated themselves onto the face of the man standing a pools length away from him, taking in the facial features slowly as his eyes adjusted to the change of light.

"Izaya?" he asked hopefully, as he slowly made his way to the figure who's face remained in the dark.

"Shizu… chan?" replied a small voice.

"IZAYA!" Shizuo shouted before running towards him, almost knocking him to the ground as he practically jumped on him and wrapped his arms around the warm body. He nuzzled Izaya's neck, his warm breath causing Izaya's skin to break out in goosebumps.

"Fucking dammit. I missed you, you shitty flea."

Izaya's famous, and long since missing, smirk returned upon his face. Shizuo's sudden presence had awoken the devious personality that the informant was famous for, which had remained dormant inside of him for months.. After seven months without seeing Shizuo, the one thing that Izaya wanted to do was to spark a reaction from him. The last thing he wanted was to appear clingy and needy in front of him. He wanted Shizuo to believe that he had been totally fine - like he had expected himself to be - and not that he had been completely destroyed by his, unfamiliar, emotions.

"Oh, I'm sorry, were we supposed to miss each other, Shizu-chan? I didn't realise~" he said, mischievously.

The look on Shizuo's face as he pulled back from the embrace made Izaya immediately regret acting like that. It was obviously a lie, but he didn't put it past the protozoan not to pick up on that. Shizuo's hazel eyes stared into Izaya's rust-red ones. They shimmered as the stars reflected upon them, but they looked slightly pained. Izaya was about to _force _himself to apologise when the look of pain in Shizuo's eyes turned into an evil, yet mischievous (and slightly flirty), glare. A smirk that mirrored Izaya's own appeared on Shizuo's face.

He gripped firmly onto Izaya's back and lifted him off the ground, all while keeping the same, intense, eye contact. Izaya thrashed his legs, but Shizuo was immune to any pain that the kicks would have normally caused. He turned around until Izaya's back was to the pool then, without any effort whatsoever, lobbed the smaller man into the dead centre of the pool.

Everything seemed to move in slow motion as Izaya felt his body moving through the air. His hair and clothes all flew out in front of him as he sailed backwards. His body tensed as it prepared for impact. He didn't even have the time to close his eyes before he was fully submerged in the freezing water of the pool. His clothes soaked through instantaneously, becoming heavy like weights.

Izaya kicked and thrashed in the water, taking desperate breaths whenever he was able to bring his head above the surface.

"Shi…" his head submerged once more,"zu-chan! I…" again, his mouth filled with water, "can't… sw-" His head went under and stayed under. By this point, Shizuo had already stripped from his was waistcoat and shoes. He dived into the water, pushing it furiously out of his way as he swam towards the sunken body.

_Shit shit shit shit. You can't be serious?! Fucking hell you better be okay._

The water bubbled as Shizuo burst out, holding Izaya around the waist so that his head stayed above the water. He shook his blonde locks and pushed them out of his face, staring at Izaya's head that hung limply on his neck.

"Izaya!" Shizuo choked as he pushed Izaya's raven hair out from in front of his closed eyes with a shaky hand. Izaya didn't move.

"IZAYA!" Shizuo shouted this time, hoping to wake Izaya as if he were only sleeping. Once again, Izaya did not move a muscle. "God dammit… Izaya…" Shizuo said as he tried to stifle back tears.

_After all this… Fucking hell, me and my stupid strength._

All of a sudden, one of Izaya's eyes opened, staring back into Shizuo's.

"Just kidding~" Izaya said as he over-exaggerated his 'dead person' face, poking his tongue out the side of his mouth and rolling his eyes back in his head. He slipped down through Shizuo's grip, resurfaced and swam the most perfect backstroke Shizuo had ever seen to the other side of the pool, where he lay in a starfish float on the surface.

"Now you're all wet Shizu-chan~ All because of me!" Izaya flirted, laughing at the sight of Shizuo drenched from head to toe.

"Iiiizaayaaa" Shizuo growled softly. "You damn fucking _flea_! If you had just died then it would've saved me the trouble of having to kill you myself!"

Not budging from his comfortable floating position, Izaya replied with his eyes closed, "If you can even catch me~". It felt _so_ good to be back to normal and he was planning to tease Shizuo a little longer before he submitted.

Shizuo narrowed his eyes, evil smile appearing on his face. He took a deep breath then dropped, quickly, under the water, hoping that Izaya hadn't heard the tiny splash he made as he submersed himself. He held his eyes open as he swam, despite the slight stinging sensation, and positioned himself directly below the unaware Izaya. He shot his arms and wrapped them around Izaya's waist before pulling down sharply and dragging, a surprised, Izaya under the water.

They wrestled under water until Izaya had managed to position himself in a sitting position above Shizuo's shoulders. Shizuo, suddenly feeling the tugging pain in his lungs, shot upward for air. Izaya gripped tightly to Shizuo's hair to avoid falling off Shizuo's shoulders.

"Giddy-up~" he said, driving his heels into Shizuo's sides. Shizuo tried to shake the flea off, but was taken by surprise when Izaya bent over until his face was upside down in front of Shizuo's. He smirked. Shizuo, who had slightly hoped for a different outcome, grabbed Izaya's thighs and threw him off his shoulders. When Izaya resurfaced he called out.

"Ne~ I think I know why you're so sluggish today~" he said as bobbed closer and closer to Shizuo, who was steaming angrily. When Shizuo didn't reply, Izaya flicked out his knife which had conveniently remained in his pocket. Shizuo didn't move, despite the fact that Izaya was quickly approaching with a knife in his hand, like a shark. It was possibly because the expression on Izaya's face was something other than the desire to kill, or even just to cut. When Izaya was right up against Shizuo, he whispered into his ear.

"I think you're so slow because…" Izaya repeated, "these soaked clothes must be weighing you down~" he purred as his knife slipped under Shizuo's bow tie and cut it off. Shizuo's face was painted with a thick, deep red, blush. His body shivered as Izaya skilfully slid his knife down Izaya's shirt, cutting it open without laying a scratch on his chest. When the shirt had floated off with assistance of the water, Izaya ran his hand along the large scar he had given Shizuo, earning a slight whimper from the latter. He felt Shizuo's body tense as he touched it, and noticed how Shizuo's breathing had suddenly become unsteady. He placed his hand onto Shizuo's heart and stared at it momentarily. He then glanced up into Shizuo's face and smirked when he saw the _gorgeous_ blush that dusted his cheeks.

_The real thing is even cuter than Shizu-nyan. _

At the thought of his poor kitten, Izaya became visibly distracted. His eyes broke the intense contact they held with the hazel eyes in front of him. Shizuo noticed this change in Izaya's demeanour.

"Are you okay?" he asked concernedly.

"What? Ah, um.. Yeah I'm fine. Shizu-chan just can't stop worrying about me! I'm _so_ lucky~"

Shizuo cocked his head to one side like a puppy and stared at Izaya's face, trying to discern whether the expression on it was genuine, or a mask. Izaya smiled back at him, but Shizuo saw through it. He pulled Izaya into another hug, this time placing his chin onto Izaya's shoulder and staring out into the distance behind him. His bare chest pressed closely against Izaya's - unfortunately - clothed chest.

"I'm so sorry," he whispered. "I don't even know what you went through here, alone. I'm just.. so, so sorry, Izaya."

The seriousness of Shizuo's tone made Izaya's heart stop before skipping a beat or two. He had never really experienced someone expressing so much concern for himself.

_It wasn't even Shizuo's fault… Why is he apologising?_

Izaya suddenly pushed Shizuo off his shoulder so that they were facing once more. The water was shallow enough for Shizuo to stand, but not Izaya, so the latter wrapped his arms around Shizuo's neck in order to stay effortlessly afloat. Hazel eyes met rust-red.

Shizuo felt a sudden warm and tingling sensation upon his lips as Izaya, more suddenly than unexpectedly, smashed his own lips onto Shizuo's. He melted into the kiss, closing his eyes as he allowed Izaya to take the lead. He leant backwards into the water, so that just his face was above the surface, with Izaya floating above him. He opened his mouth and allowed Izaya's warm, wet tongue to slip inside. God, he hadn't realised how much he'd missed this. Sure, he actually loved fighting with Izaya, as it was incredibly exhilarating, but this was just as good, if not much, _much_ better.

The blue light of the pool shone around the pair, causing them to glow magically, as they shared a kiss worth seven months. They didn't speak, they didn't move, and they didn't even break the kiss to breath - instead compromising by breathing through their noses. Izaya briefly peeped open an eye to look at Shizuo's peaceful, elated face. He was completely overwhelmed. All the bad things he had suffered through in the pst months seemed to blow away like dust, melted by Shizuo's touch and presence.

The two kissed for what seemed like an eternity. They were both feeling the same emotions. Relief, elation, desire, passion… _love?_ Nothing that happened in the past seven months even mattered to them anymore, because they were finally back together.

They were absorbed in each other.

So much so, they didn't even notice the multiple flashes of light that had occurred during their embrace.

* * *

**[ A/N ] So yeah, I hope I've improved my writing for romance scenes... I'm still not completely satisfied with how it turned out... I guess I'll have to keep on writing them to practice ;) It's hard to write them with originality though. I always feel like I'm repeating things I've read in a thousand different fics. I'm also super paranoid that I'm not getting the characters right... agh! **

**I think I might have to change the genre soon, I think I'll be ending any sort of 'angsty' stuff from here out.**

**Do people even read these ANs?**

**Anyway, TFRFFR!**


	8. Chapter 8 - Haircut

**[ A/N ] Hello everyone! Thanks for the awesome reviews! I did especially like the last chapter, and I hope that the rest of the story will be able to keep up to the standard of that.**

**I had a request a while back to not end the story with the reunion and confession, but to continue it with the pair being a couple. So yeah, I guess that's the direction the story is heading in now. Of course, there will still be many challenges for them to face! I opened quite a few 'sub-plots' that I'll somehow need to wrap up. **

**Oh, also, in regards to your review Miyako Miyazaki, I'd just like to point out the 'white flashes' that occurred in the previous chapter. Too soon to be calling it a waste, don't you think ;) Just wait for the next chapter, I'm sure you'll be pleased with the development! :o ~spoilers~**

* * *

The early morning sun crept into Izaya's bedroom through the crack in blinds, landing on his face. The sudden warmth and brightness across Izaya's closed, auburn eyes caused him to stir, eventually leading him to wake. He lay on his back, looking up at the roof, thinking about the night that had just passed.

_I'm so lucky~! _

He rolled over and pressed himself against Shizuo's bare back. The sudden touch caused Shizuo's deep and regular breathing to stop, and Izaya worried that he had woken him up. When Shizuo's breathing returned to normal, Izaya relaxed and began running his hand gently through the blonde's hair, curling it around his fingers and tracing patterns upon his scalp. When Izaya stopped - as the repetitive motion was causing himself to slowly fall back asleep - he heard the blonde groan softly, in a half asleep trance.

"No… " he mumbled.

"Don't you want me to stop, Shizu-chan~" Izaya whispered

Shizuo's head shook slightly as it pressed deeper into the pillow, hiding the pink colour it had turned. Izaya brought his hand back to Shizuo's hair and continued to play with it fondly.

"Ne, Shizu-chan," Izaya whispered softly into his ear, causing him to shiver. "… I hope you didn't pay for this haircut~"

"Hah?" Shizuo said as he sat up, completely dissolving the illusion that he was still asleep.

"I said, I hope that you didn't pay for that _crappy_ hair cut~" Izaya said, smiling cheerfully.

"Why? What's wrong with it?!" Shizuo replied, now towering over Izaya at an attempt to make him feel small.

"It wasn't done well at all! I certainly wouldn't have paid for something like that~."

"I didn't pay for it!" Shizuo said, becoming angrier but also slightly embarrassed. He thought he'd done a pretty good job with it…

"Oh~? Have you been making our friends look after you while I was gone Shizu?"

"No! I did it my self goddammit!" Shizuo blurted.

Izaya stared at him and blinked twice, waiting for the 'just kidding' which didn't come.

"You… You did…-" Izaya quickly brought his hands up to his mouth and clamped them down, attempting to stifle the laughter. The laugh bubbled inside his belly until there was nothing Izaya's hands could do to stop it from being heard.

_"AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA" _Izaya moved his hands down and crossed them over his stomach, gripping onto his sides which felt like they were splitting. Little tears built up on the corners of his eyes as he laughed harder than he'd ever remembered. Part of the laugh was relieving the stress that had built up over the months, but most of it was because imagining the 'monster of Ikebukuro' cutting his own hair was the most hilarious thing Izaya could think of. He pictured him struggling, getting frustrated and consequently breaking everything in his apartment. _Nothing _was funnier.

"Shut up flea!" Shizuo said, turing pink from embarrassment. His body trembled with the desire to lash out and hit Izaya, but he forced himself to stay in control for the sake of-

_For the sake of what? _he asked himself. _Our relationship? … What is out relationship anyway? Would Izaya be considered my boyf.. my boyfri…. No. No no no no no. That's weird. Or is it? Tch. I have no idea how to figure this kinda shit out._

"Anyway-" Shizuo interjected, trying to distract himself from the confusing thoughts that were swimming in his mind. "- It's not like you could do it any better!" he said with a 'hmph'.

"Ohohoh. Is that a challenge, Shizu-chan~" Izaya replied, finally managing to get a hold on his fit of laughter.

"What? No.. I-"

"Ok then, get up," Izaya said, a playful yet dangerous smirk appearing on his face.

"Hah? Why?"

"Hang on, wait here."

Izaya got up and walked out of the room. When he returned he was dragging a chair behind him and holding his butterfly knife in the other hand.

"You still have that?" Shizuo asked upon noticing the knife.

"Of course! I'm not going to get rid of Shizu-chan's first gift~" Izaya said sweetly as he walked into the en-suite of the bedroom and placed the chair down on the tiles. "Come on Shizu-chan~" he said, patting the chair with his hand as if it would make it more enticing to sit on.

"Oh hell no. Nope. I am _not_ going to let you cut my hair with that knife, flea." He pulled the blankets over his head like a sulking teen.

"Shizuo…"

_Damn it, fine. Agh, it always gets me when you call me that, dammit. _

"Tch." Shizuo flicked the blanket off and stood up. "At least let me go put something on first… You should too…" he said as he noticed that they were both in nothing but their underpants.

"Now now, Shizu-chan. Does that really matter~? Plus, your clothes are probably still soaked through."

"Tch."

Shizuo sat down on the chair in front of Izaya, who immediately got to work, fixing up Shizuo's dodgy haircut with his knife.

As much as Shizuo hated to admit it, Izaya had done a pretty impressive job with his haircut.

"Izaya-kun's really good with his hands." Shizuo said, absentmindedly, as he observed his hair. He hadn't meant to say it aloud, and he meant it completely innocently, not realising at all how the short phrase could be interpreted in a _completely _different way. Izaya, acknowledging the innocence in Shizuo's tone, decided to play with him a little. He leant down and whispered seductively into Shizuo's pink ear.

"You haven't even seen _the half _of it."

"Ha-Hah?" was all Shizuo could manage, his face heating up for what seemed like the hundredth time that morning. He cleared his throat and stood up, brushing himself off. "A-anyway, I wanna go get some cigarettes from the store down the road. Do you want me to get you anything while I'm there?" he said, avoiding eye contact with Izaya.

"Actually, I'd _love _it if you could buy me the latest tabloid~" Izaya said as he walked over to his wardrobe and sifted through his clothes, looking for anything that might fit Shizuo. He pulled out a pair of black tracksuit pants that were too big for him, and a plain white, v-neck t-shirt. He threw them at Shizuo, who dressed into them. Izaya felt himself heat up slightly as he saw Shizuo in the, very casual, outfit - a sight that he felt not many people would get to see.

_He looks so cuddly~._

Shizuo rubbed the back of his neck and lifted the shirt up to his nose, inhaling deeply.

"Smells good…" he muttered, causing Izaya's face to heat up even more. "Alright, I'll be back in ten."

"Aww, can't you go any faster? I'll be lonely without you~" Izaya said, putting on a fake pout.

"Make breakfast then… or something," Shizuo mumbled, waved over his shoulder and exited the apartment - hands stuffed into the pockets of Izaya's warm tracksuit pants.

"I'm not your wife Shizu-chan~" Izaya called out after him, cheerily.

_Yet. _Shizuo thought. _Woaaah, hold up. Get a grip. Why is that the first thing my stupid brain thinks of in retort? Even if I wanted to get m- *ahem* Even if I wanted to do _that_, it's not possible. We're not even.. or are we? Is this what being a couple is like? … Sappy. Snap out of it Heiwajima. _

* * *

__**[ A/N ] Yeah, TFRFFR!**

**Just a warning though: The school term is finally starting to heat up. I've got exams soon, and the assignments are starting to pile up. Not to mention I've gotta learn a whole repertoire for an orchestral eisteddfod that I'm entering in *sigh* Updates might take longer, and chapters might get shorter. For this, I apologise. But keep reviewing! I always feel like writing when I read your words of praise and encouragement! **


	9. Chapter 9 - The Tabloid

[ A/N ] Ahhhhhhh. This took so long... Sorry for the wait! My slowest update in history!

I'll let you get straight to reading then. I hope this chapter pleases you (and is not to confusing... I like to jump back to the past in the middle of my stories for some reason)

(P.s Miyako Miyazaki - Don't worry, I knew what you meant by 'waste' xD I just didn't know how to convey that I knew...)

* * *

The sound of Izaya's cheerful humming, along with the sound of frying eggs, was disrupted as the door to his apartment was almost blown of its hinges. Standing in the doorway was, unsurprisingly, Shizuo, who appeared to have found yet another thing to send him into a fit of rage. He trembled and Izaya could almost hear the sound of his teeth clenching together. His blonde bangs covered his face as he looked down at the floor, but when he looked up Izaya noticed that his face was bright red. In Shizuo's hand was a rolled up tabloid, the one Izaya had asked him to buy, which was being crushed and crumpled by his strong grip.

_He's always got something to be mad at~_

"Iiiizaaaayaaaaa…" Shizuo growled softly as he stormed over to the kitchen counter and slammed the magazine down upon it.

"Explain!"

Izaya set the frying eggs down next to the stove and curiously walked over to where Shizuo was standing.

"Shizu-chan, if you want me to see the magazine, you'll have to remove your hand from the cover~"

"Tch." Shizuo reluctantly moved his hand, quickly looking away.

Izaya blinked and stared at the cover of the tabloid. This was an unexpected surprise.

"Woah, they work fast~"

"What the fuck? Is that all you have to say?! Why the fuck is there a picture of me.. k..k.._kissing _you on the front of a magazine?!"

Izaya ignored Shizuo's questions. "How impressive! It's been a while since a paparazzi's been able to slip past my radar undetected~ Ahh, humans, you never cease to amuse me~!"

"Izayaaaa…"

_That damn flea! How can he act so calm about this?! I'm on the front of a fucking magazine kissing my mortal enemy… Why would anyone be interested in that shit anyway? Come to think of it… why was Izaya on that billboard? What the hell happened with him while I was gone…._

* * *

Shizuo stared at the many different cigarette brands in the cupboard behind the counter. He didn't recognise any of the brands, as none of them were ones he regularly bought in his world, and he was having trouble deciding which one to buy. While he was surveying his options, the man working at the newsagent stared at Shizuo, studying his facial features as if he recognised him from somewhere.

"Can I help you?" the vendor eventually asked.

"Ah.. Um.. yeah.. I'll just get a packet of those," Shizuo said, pointing to a white a gold packet of cigarettes which had a picture of a revolting, cancerous growth displayed on the side. The vendor picked it up, scanned it, then placed it on the table.

"Is that all sir?"

"Yeah… wait no. Izaya wanted something…" Shizuo pressed his thumb and forefinger to the bridge of his nose, trying to remember what Izaya has asked him for. At the mention of Izaya's name, a light turned on in the vendor's brain. _I knew I'd seen this guys face somewhere!_ he thought.

"Pardon me for interrupting, but could it be a tabloid that you're after?"

"What? Ah, yeah! That's what he wanted… How did you know?"

"Your boyfriend comes here a lot to buy them. I think he'd be particularly interested in the latest issue."

"My _WHAT?"_

"Orihara-san's your boyfriend, right? You know, they're calling you the 'real life Shizuo Heiwajima'. You do look uncannily like him, actually. It's such a coincidence. All those Shizaya fangirls are going crazy! This issue has sold out the fastest ever, and it's only been one night, can you believe it? Ah, but don't worry, I saved a copy for Orihara-san. Such a bold way for him to come out too… it's going to cut all his fans deeply - you know, the crazy girls who all thought they had a shot with him. Hahaha, I bet you're on all their 'hit lists' by now."

"Um… I'm sorry… but _what the fuck?!" _Shizuo said. _Boyfriend? Fangirls? Hit lists? _Shizaya_? Wha…?_

"Ah.. I'm sorry. It's none of my business. I'll just wait until the details of a press conference are released. After all, with such short notice, I'm sure the whole article is made up. Oh yeah, let me get the mag for you."

The man bent down and reached for a shelf under the counter. He pulled out the last copy of the tabloid he had in stock and placed it on the counter. When Shizuo laid eyes on the cover it only took a second before his whole face, ear to ear, was as red as a tomato.

"Wha- What the fuck is this?!"

"I'm sorry, is everything alright?"

Shizuo snatched up the tabloid, and held it right in front of his face, as if doing so would allow him to correctly see the image - an image which was definitely _not _him and Izaya making out in a dodgy pool. It didn't work. He was definitely looking right at it. That was him. That was Izaya. That was their mouths, locked together as they floated in a pool, oblivious to the fact that someone was taking photos of them. Subconsciously, Shizuo began gripping the magazine very hard, and the vendor could tell that he was seriously pissed off, as well as totally embarrassed. The aura coming off him was murderous, and the vendor has a feeling that his life would end if he did anything to piss the blonde off.

"You know what?" the vendor said as he swallowed his nerves, "You can have that for free. The cigarettes too. Izaya's a loyal customer… consider it a gift."

"Tch." Shizuo snatched up the cigarettes and walked towards the exit.

"I'm going to kill that flea," he muttered under his breath, loud enough for the vendor to hear.

_Well, I guess the assumption the article made about even his personality being like Shizuo Heiwajima's was true. Just like Izaya… this is almost too coincidental. _

Shizuo stopped when he arrived at the newsagents exit, a lit cigarette already hanging from his mouth.

"Oh, and by the way. I _am _the 'real life Shizuo Heiwajima'" he said, before storming out.

_It couldn't be… Could they…? Impossible, _the vendor thought to himself as he watched the blonde exit, then stop to rip up a street sign and throw it to the other side of the road to vent some of his anger.

* * *

Completely ignoring the fuming and embarrassed blonde, Izaya picked up the tabloid and reclined on his couch. He reached for his reading glasses on the coffee table and put them on.

**[More exclusive pics inside! Article page 6]**

Seeing Izaya in glasses managed to briefly distract Shizuo from his rage. Does everything get sexier with glasses on? His calm, slightly turned on, state of mind didn't last long, as Izaya had begun to read the article out loud.

"Sorry fangirls, we've got bad news! Izaya Orihara, famous and popular idol, has been caught eloping with a secret lover - a man!"

"Oi, shut up. I don't wanna hear this shit!" Shizuo said, folding his arms and gripping tightly onto his biceps.

"How about a late night swim for romantic!? But who is this mysterious man who's managed to capture Izaya's heart - a task we've all tried to do, but failed?"

"Oi, seriously."

"Is it just a coincidence that the pair look exactly like the beloved fangirl paring 'Shizaya' from popular manga and anime, Durarara! ? Could this be a surprise promotion for the up-and-coming movie? This mysterious 'real life Shizuo Heiwajima' was spotted only a day ago, throwing vehicles and vending machines everywhere-"

"Hey, I only threw one! Lying piece of shit..."

"- but it was recently confirmed that this act of strength was not a stunt arranged by the advertising department for the live action film. Could this be the real deal? Iza-"

Shizuo snatched the tabloid out of Izaya's hands and ripped it in half, effortlessly. Izaya pouted.

"I was reading that, Shizu-chan~!"

"E-X-P-L-A-I-N. _Now!"_

* * *

__**[ A/N ] Sorry, bit of a short chapter this time. I wrote it while I was babysitting once I finally - after 3 hours - got the kids to sleep. Getting three hyperactive kids sharing the same bedroom to go to sleep is ****_not _****easy, let me tell you!**

**Will Shizuo ever get to eat eggs prepared for him by Izaya?! The poor eggs... I just forgot about them. Maybe they will have a come back in the next chapter! (or not..)**

**THANKS GUYS FOR YOUR REVIEWS! I LOVE THEM, I LOVE YOU, AND I LOVE SHIZAYA (So I will keep writing when ever I have the time. First I need to finish my bloody english assignment on Othello. Did I mention that Iago reminds me of Izaya? Like soooo much. When ever I read Iago's lines, I imagine Izaya saying them.)**


	10. Chapter 10 - Rainbow Road

**[ A/N ] Ahhh! Sorry sorry sorry sorry sorry! Sorry for not updating the story for so long! (I can't believe I gained 2 story followers in this time) I know where I want to go with it, but I just couldn't find the words to fill in the time gaps (plus, if I just jumped straight to my 'landmarks' there'd be no content to the story. I promise (at lease I hope...) the next update will not take another month! Ugh, I really hope this chapter is actually good, and not just shit I'm writing in order to actually get something done. How does one deal with writers block?!**

* * *

"…"

"What~? Cat got your tongue?"

Shizuo stared across the table at Izaya, blinking as he processed all the information he'd been told. Of course, knowing_ that_ meant that seeing Izaya on billboards and in magazines made much more sense, but Shizuo was having a hard time accepting that Izaya was famous - and not for all the _wrong _reasons. Psychopathic? Sociopath? Try charming and talented. Shizuo scoffed at the thought, _yeah right. _ He thoughts returned once more to the tabloid, his face shooting up in a bright blush, causing Izaya to smirk. If that was the truth, and Izaya's said popularity really was, although unlikely, unexaggerated… _I'm not going to be able to go outside without getting recognised as his… lover. _He covered his face, attempting to hide his embarrassment. Izaya shifted forward, leaning over the table as he reached out and grabbed Shizuo's hands, pulling them away from his face and laughing playfully. He tilted his head to one side, flashing Shizuo with a rare genuine smile, a gesture which evoked an irregular fluttering from Shizuo's heart. Izaya stared, intimidatingly into his eyes, his curiosity dying to see Shizuo's reaction to the situation. He knew that Shizuo hated being in the limelight even though he was used to it, as one with his extraordinary temper and inhumane strength would be. Izaya was temped to push Shizuo further into the spotlight, see how long he could take it until he cracked. After all, nothing was more amusing to Izaya than seeing Shizuo embarrass himself in public. Well, _almost _nothing. He had to admit, seeing Shizuo acting 'tsundere', as he liked to put it, was _certainly _amusing. _And cute~_

Their silence was broken as Izaya's cellphone blared with a dreadfully annoying tune. Izaya dropped Shizuo's hands and turned his head in a fluid motion, as he rolled his eyes, towards the sound. He let out an annoyed and disappointed grunt and staggered refractorily towards his phone. He held up his index finger in Shizuo's direction, without turning to face him, as he flicked open his phone, holding it inches away from his ear by his thumb and middle finger. Shizuo rolled his eyes as Izaya indicated for him to 'hold on a moment'. He got up from the table and walked towards the kitchenette, pleading for Izaya's fridge to be stocked with milk. He winced as he heard, even from his positioning, an angry, electronically distorted, voice howl out of Izaya's phone. Izaya had closed his eyes and turned away from the phone and Shizuo guessed that he'd been expecting a reaction like that. He couldn't help but listen to the conversation as he opened the fridge, discovering, much to his relief, multiple bottles of milk. _Could he have been… thinking of me?_

"Jesus fucking Christ, Izaya what the hell have you been doing!? I thought you were dead or something, but OH NO, you were just SKIPPING YOUR FUCKING JOB to fuck around with your boyfriend IN PUBLIC. Excuse me for caring about your image, but as your fucking manager ITS MY JOB. Do you realise your actions will have repercussions? I've gotta arrange press conferences, and I swear to god if this is just some 'one night stand' bullshit you're going to be in for it. Do you realise what something like this could do for your career? Not to mention I've already had to cover up for your violent outbreak on set, which was absolutely inexcusable, and you're expected to give a formal apology-"

"Calm down, calm down," Izaya said in his usual, nonchalant and unfazed tone. "Thankfully for my _boyfriend_ I'm not," he said, purposely being indirect with his statement for his own entertainment. Shizuo's eyes shot in Izaya's direction, widening as Izaya referred to him as his boyfriend, even though it was laced with a little sarcasm. He positioned himself, with his glass of milk, as close as he could to Izaya, without seeming suspicious, but still allowing him to hear the loud voice on the other end of the phone.

"That you're not what? Turning up to work?" Izaya's manager asked, clearly unamused by Izaya's misdirection.

"Dead," Izaya replied in an almost serious tone. Shizuo almost spat milk across the room. _Was he being serious? _The smirk on Izaya's face suggested otherwise, so Shizuo let the remark pass off as Izaya's sick idea for a joke.

"Ha ha. You need to stop messing around. Whether you like it or not, you've gotta finish making this damn movie because they've shot too many scenes to remake them, and as much as I hate to admit this when I'm _damn _pissed at you, there's no one better for the role in existence. You're lucky you're earning me good dollar, because I _swear to god_ I'd leave you out on your ass if you weren't. Now I have to clean up all your shit, and I'm not happy about it. I've scheduled a press conference in half an hour. It's at the usual place, and I'm too fucking pissed to send a chauffeur so you better get your damned ass here on time. Half an hour. _No exceptions._"

"Yeah, yeah. I'll be there. Bye~" Izaya hung up the phone and threw it onto the couch, sighing as he turned to face Shizuo. "Sorry Shizu-chan, looks like we'll have to leave question time to later, I'm needed~ Ahh, I wish I could stay here with you."

He disappeared into his room and returned shortly after, wearing a fashionable and very expensive looking outfit that was neither formal nor casual. He bustled around the apartment, grabbing various things and stuffing them into pockets. Shizuo, choosing to act uninterested, returned to the fridge to pour himself another glass of milk.

"Feel free to do whatever you want with whatever's in the apartment. I've got a few playstation and wii games, but you're only allowed to play if you promise you won't break the console when you get angry. And you _will _get angry~" Izaya called out as he let himself out the door, closing it loudly behind him for dramatic effect. Shizuo rolled his eyes and looked around the spacious, mostly empty, apartment, finding his attention drawn back to the many bottles of milk in the fridge. _Why the hell does he have this much milk? _

The front door suddenly opened, causing Shizuo to jump. He turned to see Izaya poking his head around the door frame. He spoke as if he'd read Shizuo's mind.

"If you're wondering why there's so much milk in my fridge, it was for Shizu-nyan~" he said with a wink, and left the apartment - this time for good.

Shizuo blinked, confusedly._ Shizu-nyan? What the-? _

After helping himself to another glass of milk, he decided to look around the apartment. It was incredibly well kept - nothing was out of place, and Shizuo couldn't even find a fleck of dust covering the furniture. The apartment had six rooms in total, although one of those rooms acted as a kitchen, dining and lounge. The back wall of the lounge was really just a large window, one which overlooked the entire city. _Of course Izaya would have gone for something like this_, Shizuo thought as he leaned against the window and looked down at the people passing below.

The edge of the lounge area was trimmed with a mezzanine floor, a large bookcase situated on top. Shizuo wondered if Izaya had really read all the books that filled it, or if he'd just bought them for decoration. He climbed the half ladder, half stair case up to the mezzanine floor and walked alongside the bookcase until he came to a door, which he opened. The floor inside the room was covered in beanbags and cushions. There were a few reading lamps scattered variously around the place, and a bunch of DVDs and games sitting on a shelf under a _huge_ plasma television. Shizuo shrugged and walked over to the shelf, looking through the games Izaya had and settling for Mario Kart. After all, it was the only game that didn't seem violent. After twenty minutes of pressing buttons on various remotes, Shizuo finally figured out how to work everything. Considerably, it took him a while to figure out how to work the wii's motion activated navigation system, and it didn't help that he'd wasted time trying to load the game in the playstation and getting frustrated when the console rejected the disk.

When the game _finally_ started up, he threw his fists up into the air in triumph, taking pride in the fact that he'd managed to do it himself without smashing anything out of frustration. The character selection window popped up, and Shizuo went with Peach. He hadn't intended to, but his aim missed Luigi he couldn't be bothered to figure out how to go back. Not knowing anything about the courses, he went with his gut and selected the Special Cup, gripping the 'steering wheel' tightly in his hands as the countdown for the first race began. He did well, considering that Izaya had the difficulty level turned right up, and was feeling pretty pleased with himself after he placed fourth on the third course. The fourth course started up, and Shizuo was feeling pretty confident to go for second place. He pressed hard on the accelerator button, as if the extra pressure would somehow translate into the game and cause him to speed up further. However, this course was none other than the death trap, Rainbow Road. He was only seconds into the course when he fell off, and continued to fall off at one particular sharp turn in the course until he was lapped. Once he _finally_ cleared the corner, he was knocked off the edge by a CPU, which sent him into a raging fit. He threw the wii remote at the nearest bean bag and turned off the TV, as violently as one can. He stormed out of the room, kicking the wii remote on the way out, and slammed the door closed.

"Fucking Mario Kart" he muttered under his breath.

* * *

**[ A/N ] Ok wow, I'm so sorry, I have no idea where all that Mario Kart stuff came from. This is what happens when I write at 12o'clock at night... I couldn't bring myself to delete it because I think Shizuo playing Mario Kart would be hilarious. **

**Anyway, please review! I love them so much (especially because I'm narcissistic), and they will really help me to be motivated to write. Concrit is good to (criticise me for writing about Mario Kart... or criticise Izaya for owning a wii - he only owns one because I realised you can't play Mario Kart on a playstation. Seriously, I should go to bed now. I won't be surprised if I have dreams about Mario Kart. I haven't even played it recently..)**

**Thanks for sticking with me, even though I've been an unreliable author! Goodnight!**

**(p.s the next chapter will be cute ^.^ )**


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